[Archived] Blackburn Sign Chilean Superstar Carlos Villanueva

[T4E]

Probably not - but not because I don't believe he's good enough, more that I can't see him getting a chance here with another Prem team after struggling to break in to a relegation threatened team this season.

If I have to guess, I'd say he'll go to Italy.

[Hughesy]

Sums it up for me, Mum. He'll be a star elsewhere, its an absolute nailed on certainty.

I think so too. He has bags of talent. He would suite a 3-4-1-2 formation as the player in the hole, free to roam and cause havoc. Italy or Spain and he will probably be a star.

For us - he hasnt justified the £5m fee that comes at the end of the deal.

[spencey7]

just hoof the ball about and bump into each other.

You been listening to our teamtalks Nicko?

I'd be gutted to see Carlos leave. For all Allardyce's talk of "quality" (a word he mentions in almost every interview) he's quite happy for us to lose the only "quality" player (aside from Tugay) in our entire squad. I dread to think what/who the summer may bring, relegation or no relegation.

[ABBEY]

go on spence what have you seen that sam or anyone else hasnt seen (apart from free kicks?)?

[John]

Carlos Villanueva Hoping To Stay At Blackburn Rovers

[Amo]

If Sam treats the Liverpool game like he did the Arsenal one, then I don't see the harm in giving Carlos a go. But for the love of God don't play him on the wing. We should see him upfront/second striker.

[Exiled_Rover]

If he's free and on peanuts I'd keep him around otherwise no ta.

[herbergeehh]

Would be good if he signed fairly cheaply, but don't see it happening. Not under Sam, and probably not on a price that makes it worthwhile either.

[rover6]

Villaneuva on the scoresheet for the reserves - currently leading Liverpool 1-0. Sounds like a good performance.

Hope for the King?

1-1 now. Still a good result against a Liverpool side that has consistently been one of the best reserve sides around. Especially promising, from GroobyNews, that Villaneuva was heavily involved (also subjected to a "clothes line" challenge). I would be really interested to hear from anyone who went to the match, have we seen the new tougher, ENglish-footy-suitable King Carlos?

[Mozzer]

with the growing injury list surely he has to be in the frame to get a game.. i know its completely different to the league but surely with him doing well in reserves he should get his chance in the first team..i know he isnt a right winger but i was quite impressed with him whenever he has played there-maybe with diouf up front it could work..

[herbergeehh]

Another really well taken goal from Villanueva today. It's the reserves, but his set pieces and finishing alone makes him a welcome addition to our squad. With our aerial strength at the moment, excellent delivery is so important.

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

Another really well taken goal from Villanueva today. It's the reserves, but his set pieces and finishing alone makes him a welcome addition to our squad. With our aerial strength at the moment, excellent delivery is so important.

Totally agree - pointless having aerial power like Samba - just having him nod it on to no one imparticular. Carlos could be an absolute star given the correct position in the team.

[roversmum]

Carlos gave the Liverpool defence no end of problems. Having said that, the whole team played well and in truth Liverpool really did not deserve their goal! Most enjoyable match.

[modes98]

Maybe Sam should finally give him a chance! Seems to be flying for the reserves and MGP is struggling for Pool.

[Parsonblue]

Villaneuva on the scoresheet for the reserves - currently leading Liverpool 1-0. Sounds like a good performance.

Hope for the King?

1-1 now. Still a good result against a Liverpool side that has consistently been one of the best reserve sides around. Especially promising, from GroobyNews, that Villaneuva was heavily involved (also subjected to a "clothes line" challenge). I would be really interested to hear from anyone who went to the match, have we seen the new tougher, ENglish-footy-suitable King Carlos?

Liverpool are bottom of the Reserve League and were really quite poor by their usual standards. Carlos started off very well spreading the ball around but, as I say, Liverpool were poor. He scored an excellent goal from distance but as the second half went on he faded out of the game. If he was available for £1 million he might be worth a punt but, to be honest, I can't see him making the grade in the Premiership. If his club want £3, £4 or £5 million for him then I really can't see Sam spending that amount of money on a player who has struggled to cope with the demands of English football. You can't fault him for effort but he just lacks the legs to cope with the speed of the English game.

I thought Doran had a better game tonight and Gunning was excellent in defence alongside the always reliable Zurab. I was again disappointed in Simpson at right-back. He didn't have the best of nights but Olsson was lively attacking down the left from full-back. We got caught at the end when Andy Haworth, who came on as a second half sub and really struggled to get into the game, lost possession and Liverpool scored from their only real chance of the half.

It was good to see Grella back in action and he looked very comfortable playing in front of the back four. His distribution was good and he always looked comfortable in possession.

[chileandude]

Not only is Villanueva not apt for Premiership football...but he probably ended in one of the least technical or creative sides in the Premiership. No chance for him to combine with anyone else to make something happen. To be a success in Blackburn you must have speed and have decent upper body strength. He can increase his strength a bit, but there is nothing to do about speed...positioning helps though.

I'm glad he is at least playing on a reserve league...whatever happens he must not remain too long without playing any football because that can lose freshness and valuable hours of experience. I still think he might play a part for the Chilean NT in a not so distant future. He could be a valuable asset when looking for that deciding free kick or cross to get over a tight defense...specially now that we are so close to South Africa.

[gumboots]

Liverpool are bottom of the Reserve League and were really quite poor by their usual standards. Carlos started off very well spreading the ball around but, as I say, Liverpool were poor. He scored an excellent goal from distance but as the second half went on he faded out of the game. If he was available for £1 million he might be worth a punt but, to be honest, I can't see him making the grade in the Premiership. If his club want £3, £4 or £5 million for him then I really can't see Sam spending that amount of money on a player who has struggled to cope with the demands of English football. You can't fault him for effort but he just lacks the legs to cope with the speed of the English game.

I thought Doran had a better game tonight and Gunning was excellent in defence alongside the always reliable Zurab. I was again disappointed in Simpson at right-back. He didn't have the best of nights but Olsson was lively attacking down the left from full-back. We got caught at the end when Andy Haworth, who came on as a second half sub and really struggled to get into the game, lost possession and Liverpool scored from their only real chance of the half.

It was good to see Grella back in action and he looked very comfortable playing in front of the back four. His distribution was good and he always looked comfortable in possession.

Agree with that totally. The old hands plus Doran and Gunning were a cut above everyone else. And as a side note, how filthy were Liverpool? Their number 3 should probably have walked for a second bookable.

[Blue blood]

Liverpool are bottom of the Reserve League and were really quite poor by their usual standards. Carlos started off very well spreading the ball around but, as I say, Liverpool were poor. He scored an excellent goal from distance but as the second half went on he faded out of the game. If he was available for £1 million he might be worth a punt but, to be honest, I can't see him making the grade in the Premiership. If his club want £3, £4 or £5 million for him then I really can't see Sam spending that amount of money on a player who has struggled to cope with the demands of English football. You can't fault him for effort but he just lacks the legs to cope with the speed of the English game.

I thought Doran had a better game tonight and Gunning was excellent in defence alongside the always reliable Zurab. I was again disappointed in Simpson at right-back. He didn't have the best of nights but Olsson was lively attacking down the left from full-back. We got caught at the end when Andy Haworth, who came on as a second half sub and really struggled to get into the game, lost possession and Liverpool scored from their only real chance of the half.

It was good to see Grella back in action and he looked very comfortable playing in front of the back four. His distribution was good and he always looked comfortable in possession.

A good assessment of the game, although I thought for two thirds of the game that Carlos looked very good. He might well be a square peg in a round hole but he is an extremely good square peg.

Interesting that Grella and Doran came off - which indicates that the former will definately be involved against Liverpool, and as for Doran who knows? Seemed early to take him off if if he's not involved at all. That Carlos wasn't taken off indicates that he probably won't get near the starting line up even with all our injuries.

There's no doubting Carlos' talent, and the more I see him the more and more I'm convinced what a fantastic footballer he is and that it'd be an utter waste to let such a talent go. Sadly I do realise that his lack of pace and stamina are big issues, but surely the latter can be sorted out with time? Given how much talent he had, for a nominal fee of a million or so, he really would be worth snapping up, he has more skill than a lot of players.

Maybe he could spray passes about like Tugs does, but a bit higher up the pitch? Maybe he could be a super sub coming on behind the main striker or strike pair for games we are chasing? As we rely on developing players into top quality, having someone with the raw talent of Carlos would be a great asset to develop - both to the team and in monetary terms. However if the fee is substantial, given that this would probably take a bit of time, I can't see us going for it.

[Montfort]

I thought he did quite well against Liverpool on Saturday He certainly did not seem to be out of hid depth and there were flashes of what he could possibly do. There was one instance when he seemed to be surounded by Liverpool players but hung on to the ball for a decent length of time.

[DE.]

A good assessment of the game, although I thought for two thirds of the game that Carlos looked very good. He might well be a square peg in a round hole but he is an extremely good square peg.

Interesting that Grella and Doran came off - which indicates that the former will definately be involved against Liverpool, and as for Doran who knows? Seemed early to take him off if if he's not involved at all. That Carlos wasn't taken off indicates that he probably won't get near the starting line up even with all our injuries.

There's no doubting Carlos' talent, and the more I see him the more and more I'm convinced what a fantastic footballer he is and that it'd be an utter waste to let such a talent go. Sadly I do realise that his lack of pace and stamina are big issues, but surely the latter can be sorted out with time? Given how much talent he had, for a nominal fee of a million or so, he really would be worth snapping up, he has more skill than a lot of players.

Maybe he could spray passes about like Tugs does, but a bit higher up the pitch? Maybe he could be a super sub coming on behind the main striker or strike pair for games we are chasing? As we rely on developing players into top quality, having someone with the raw talent of Carlos would be a great asset to develop - both to the team and in monetary terms. However if the fee is substantial, given that this would probably take a bit of time, I can't see us going for it.

Don't they want 3 or 4M for Carlos? Can't see us paying that.

[Amo]

Can't see Audax letting us extend his loan either, as his value will drop. They'll most likely ship to the continent in the summer.

[Billy Castell]

I also thought he looked pretty good against the hubcaps. I'd buy him, but at the right price. Anything above £3m is a rip off from what we have seen, so the £5m fee is positively mad. Doran looked OK too, although he was nervous.

[frosty]

I'd like to see Villanueva start against Wigan on Sunday. The last two games he has come off the bench and done okay so I'd give him a start against Wigan.

And he can actually take a decent corner.

[Hughesy]

I also felt that the fans got a lift when they saw him appear.

He obviously panicks opposition and quite often you see 2 or 3 players going to close him down, which obviously creates space for others. Id love to sign him, but not for £5m.

[herbergeehh]

Had we kept McCarthy on in front of him, Villanueva's appearance would give us so much more. Benni was a loner up front, a role he did not cope with at all, and Villanueva needs someone to pass to. Both our wingers were poor, which pretty much made it an impossible task. Keep Villanueva in the squad though, he does give us something extra.